Inquest begins into overdose deaths of midwife and nurse

A MIDWIFE and a nurse at two of Perth's major hospitals died of accidental drug overdoses within six months of each other, prompting an inquest probing whether the drugs that killed them were obtained from their workplaces.

Hayley Fisher, 27, died in December 2009 after injecting a massive dose of the powerful painkiller Fentanyl while at work at King Edward Memorial Hospital. She was found dead in a hospital toilet.

In June 2012, 39-year-old Craig Doherty, a nurse at Royal Perth Hospital, was found dead at his unit having injected a fatal dose of the sedative Propofol.

At the opening of the inquest in Perth today, coroner Barry King was tasked with examining whether Ms Fisher or Mr Doherty were able to get hold of the drugs without their employers or colleagues knowing.

The inquiry will also probe whether powerful sedatives and opiates at the two hospitals were stored and monitored adequately, and if changes to the classification of such drugs should be considered.

Marco Tedeschi, counsel assisting the coroner, said it was possible Ms Fisher had obtained the Fentanyl that killed her in the hours leading up to her death, or weeks prior.

But investigating officer, Detective Senior Sergeant Hayley Burke, said her checks of the maternity hospital's drug records revealed no official documentation showing the midwife had signed for any Fentanyl.

Other drugs, including pethidine, codeine and morphine were also found in Ms Fisher's body after her death, and Mr Tedeschi said where she got the drugs from remained a mystery.

"It is not apparent how she obtained access to the other opiates and there is no record of her signing for them while at work on the day she lost her life,'' Mr Tedeschi said.

Mr Doherty, who had a history of depression, was also found with a cocktail of drugs in his system.

The drugs found in his apartment were unlabelled and all but certain to have been obtained at Royal Perth Hospital.

A vial of adrenaline found near Mr Doherty's body could only have been sourced from the hospital.